1. Technical Field
The present subject matter relates to computer networking systems. If further relates to providing network server identification to a network client in response to a request from the network client.
2. Description of Related Art
In a computer network, it is common for client devices and/or applications to communicate with server devices/applications over the computer network. In order for the client to communicate with the server, the client needs information on the server so that the network message can be properly addressed to the server.
Many networks use a protocol for addressing packets on a network called Internet Protocol (IP). Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4), which is often used, assigns a 32 bit number to each device. This number, which is commonly referred to as an “IP Address,” is often written in a form of 4 separate decimal numbers ranging from 0-255 separated by periods (e.g. 192.168.0.255). Network interfaces, routers and other networking infrastructure, can then use the IP Address to ensure that a network message is delivered to the proper recipient even if that device is not on the same physical network as the sender. IP Addresses may be manually assigned to each device, automatically assigned by Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DCHP) servers, or assigned using a variety of other methods. Additional granularity of addressing within a particular device may be provided by having port addresses within each IP Address.
In some cases, such as on the World Wide Web, servers are more commonly known by names, such as domain names like www.uspto.gov, instead of their underlying true IP Address. The Domain Name System (DNS) provides a system for converting a server name to an IP Address by sending a request to the IP Address of a known DNS database server which then looks up the IP Address for the domain name and sends a response back the original requestor with the server's IP Address.
The Network Basic Input/Output System (NetBIOS) is a method that allows computers on a local area network (LAN) to communicate using NetBIOS names instead of IP Addresses. One service provided through NetBIOS is a datagram service allowing messages to be sent without first establishing a connection. The datagrams sent using NetBIOS typically use User Datagram Protocol (UDP) port 138 and allow, inter alia, computers to send/receive datagrams to/from a particular device on the LAN by using the device's NetBIOS name.
Another method that may be used to allow computers to communicate with each other over a LAN is a set of techniques that automatically create useable IP addresses without manual operator interaction or special configuration servers (such as DNS or DHCP servers) which may be known as Zero Configuration Networking (zeroconf). Zeroconf is built on three core technologies, automatic self-assignment of IP addresses by each device (address autoconfiguration), automatic computer name resolution and distribution using Multicast Domain Name Services, and automatic discovery of network services, such as printing devices, through services such as DNS Based Service Discovery (DNS-SD) or the Simple Service Discovery Protocol (SSDP) of Universal Plug and Play (UPnP).